Derek Bodner’s Blog

I purposefully withheld writing this article after A.J. Feeley’s admirable performance, even if it did come up short, because I wanted to see if he would be up to the task of repeating his success. Clearly we now know he was not, but that doesn’t mean you can’t take anything away from his performances. The last two games have shown that McNabb’s a very talented quarterback, but one that doesn’t fit the offense Reid is trying to run, whereas Feeley’s the right fit for the offense but a mediocre talent.

What the success Feeley had in the loss to the Patriots showed was what this offense can look like with the right fit at the position. Someone who gets the ball out quickly, throws to a spot, has touch on the midrange passes. All criticisms of McNabb, which they while don’t make Feeley a better quarterback, they do make McNabb a square peg in the round hole that is the Westcoast Offense, an offense predicated on timing and accuracy.

The last two games have also shown that Feeley is what he is. While being the right type of quarterback for the system, he has the talent level of a backup quarterback. The interceptions thrown during the Seattle game weren’t one of timing mistakes or simply throwing the ball up and letting receivers make plays, they were incorrect reads. It is possible to get a quarterback of Feeley’s style with the talent level of McNabb, and to play the game Feeley played without throwing the interceptions.

I do not fault McNabb for this one iota. All quarterbacks are different, with different skillsets and tendencies. McNabb is a very good quarterback, and a very successful quarterback. The fact that he succeeded at the level that he has even while working in a system that doesn’t cater to his strengths says a lot about the overall talent level of the best quarterback in Eagles franchise history. Ultimately, my blame goes to Reid. First, he cheated us out of the last nine years by drafting, developing, and sticking with a quarterback who’s strenghs don’t correspond to the requirements of the position in his offense. He also cheated McNabb out of the best years of his career by putting him in an offense that doesn’t play to his strenghts, and refusing to change the system to make the most out of his franchise quarterback. McNabb is a very good intermediate and long range passer, plays very well off the playaction, and was great at improvising and buying time on busted plays with his legs. You can’t have a successful play action pass when the defense doesn’t respect the run, and the defense won’t respect the run when you throw 65% of the time. You don’t put McNabb in a timing offense that requires you to get the ball out and throw to spots when that’s never been the strength of his game. Both McNabb and the Eagles fans would have been better served if Andy Reid had tailored his offense over the years around the strength of his quarterback. He failed to do that, and in the process failed to utilize the best quarterback in Eagles history. It’s most definitely time for the Eagles and McNabb to part ways, and it’s a shame it’s ended like this.